


Illusory

by Volitaire



Category: Thor (Movies), Thor - All Media Types
Genre: Freeform, He tries so hard, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Loki Angst, M/M, Post-Thor: The Dark World, Thor tries, doesn't take place at any particular time, frigga is a good concerned mother, frigga knows what's up, kind of, loki is lost and depressed, mostly support in a platonic and brotherly way, not by lack of trying, not quite romantic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-14
Updated: 2017-06-14
Packaged: 2018-11-13 22:51:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11195118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Volitaire/pseuds/Volitaire
Summary: "No more illusions, brother," Thor demanded quietly. | In which Thor offers comfort to his broken sibling, and Frigga doesn't interfere.





	Illusory

"No more illusions, brother," Thor demanded quietly. 

With a strained, hesitant look in Loki's eyes, the facade melted away with soft flash of Seiðr. 

Thor took in the sight, the reality, mouth agape. The cell, once orderly and ornate lay in disarray. The table is upturned and dismantled in many pieces, the fabric from the bed strewn across the room in shredded strips. The crystal chandelier laid dismantled, the wire sparking weakly. 

Loki's clothes were torn, hair frayed and mussed. His skin was littered with scrapes, cuts, and burns, his knuckles and fingers bloodied. His eyes were dark and gaunt, weary and desperately fatigued. His form seemed even smaller than usual as he sat isolated against the furthest wall. 

He looked defeated, and Thor silently concluded that couldn't stand idly by as his brother suffered this way. 

With a shaky sigh, he opened the cell door. Even from afar, his brother shied away from his presence, unsure. Was that fear? As a precaution, he unsheathed Mjölnir, laying her near the entrance of the cell. He shed his heavy armour, making a display of his unarmed state before approaching. 

Even so, Loki seemed hesitant as Thor stood before him. "May I sit, brother?" He asked softly, evenly. He made a conscious effort to not let his grim concern show in his tone as he spoke to his broken sibling. 

Loki glanced up at him for only a second, almost seeming nervous in nature, then looked past him, eyes vacant. "Do what you wish." His tone was empty, lacking all semblance of his token pride and defiance. 

He eased down next to Loki, carefully focusing on moving slowly, lest he startle his brother. For the first time, he was able to study him up close. That's when he noticed the angry, bloody lines of scratches across Loki's fair wrists. Crestfallen, shocked, Thor spoke up, "Loki..."

He refused to look at Thor, keeping his eyes fixed in the distance. His voice shook, frustration flaring from within, "Do you see who I truly am, brother?" 

Thor shook his head, reaching for his brother's bloodied hand. He entwined their fingers, letting out a long exhale. "I know who you are. And it doesn't scare me." At the admission, Thor kissed his cracked knuckles and relaxed against the wall. In silence they sat, alone in the chaos of the destroyed cell. 

Loki, in all honesty, craved the closeness his brother offered; his mind was raging, and he felt like without Thor there to anchor him, he might wither away completely, submitting to his doubts for good. After a indeterminate span, he rested his head on Thor's shoulder, allowing himself to seek comfort. 

"It's unwise of you to approach me unarmed, Thor. I may be concealing a blade," Loki mused quietly. "You've been taught better than this."

"I know you have a knife tucked inside your sleeve," Thor divulged, unfazed, voice infuriatingly calm and gentle. 

"Then why did you leave Mjölnir over there? You know Seiðr doesn't work in here—even summoning magik can't function under Frigga's wards."

"I know you won't hurt me right now," responded Thor with more confidence than he truly felt. 

But it seemed to be a good enough answer for Loki. He sighed, and with a flick of the wrist, Loki presented the dagger to Thor. Thor smiled minutely, accepting the blade and slipping it into his boot. Loki, in turn curled up closer to his brother. 

The peace amisdt the absolute chaos that the torn up room displayed highlighted the tumult in Thor's mind. Loki is clearly guilty of unforgivable crimes, but he knows that now, more than ever, if he hopes to get Loki back, he needed to be kind and understanding rather than condemning. 

Plus, there was always a part of him that was absolutely weak to Loki and all his charms. No matter the heinous nature of his crimes, Thor knew, deep down, he could never hate Loki. For better or for worse.

He knew that eventually he'd have to confront Loki on his actions, but he knew that this wasn't the time. Rather, Loki needed silence and tenderness. 

Thor wasn't adept at dealing with emotions, by any means. But for Loki, he offered his very best effort. 

Amidst his reverie, the door to the containment wing clicked open in the distance and Thor jerked up, alert. Loki stayed put, murmuring, "They see me reading in an orderly room; they can't see or hear us."

Despite the assurance from his brother, Thor stayed silent as the guard made his rounds. He watched the warrior closely, reading the gaze on the man's face as disgust. Thor made a mental note to heckle the man later. 

Once the man left, he turned his full attention back to his brother. Thor relaxed, a mirthless suspicion tinging his response, "How does illusory Seiðr not qualify under the wards?"

Loki smiled faintly. "A gift from Frigga—her Sight can see through my Seiðr regardless. It was more of something that could offer some comfort." He paused and his gaze faltered, voice quieting. "So much for that." 

Thor allowed his concern to surface at the comment. "When was the last time you've slept, Loki?"

Loki shrugged, "How long have I been in here?" 

Thor raised an eyebrow. "You need your sleep, brother." 

He began standing only to have Loki claw at his sleeves, grasping his hand in panic. 

When Thor looked back at him in shock. His brother seemed to notice the desperation behind his actions, averting his eyes in shame. "Please don't leave," Loki urged softly. His eyes were wet with tears. 

Thor chuckled softly. "I'm just going to retrieve my cape to cover you with, since the blankets seem hardly useful. Okay?"

Loki withdrew his hand gingerly, nodding. Nevertheless, he watched Thor closely as he crossed the distance to his armour. He seemed ready to sprint and tackle his brother if he made an effort to leave. But true to his word, he returned and sat beside his brother again, handing him his cape. 

He delighted in the way it smelled of ozone, rain, and wine as Loki wrapped the cloak around his shoulders. Loki looked content for a moment, but anxiety quickly took him again. "Will you be here when I wake up, Thor?" 

The vulnerability in his voice shook every fibre of Thor's being. He hesitated, reminding himself of his duties that he needed to attend to. But when he saw the fear and tragic dread well up in Loki's eyes, he couldn't care. 

"You are my priority right now, brother. I will be here when you awake." He wiped the tear that fell from Loki's eye. "I swear it." As a testament to his words, he kissed his brother's forehead. 

But before he could finish the motion, Thor let out a startled sound as Loki climbed onto his lap in one swift motion. He draped the cloak around his shoulders again, looking up at Thor. "Just to make sure you won't be leaving in the night," Loki explained, a spark of mischief coming alongside the fear. 

Thor let out a laugh of disbelief, delighted at Loki's defiant antic. "Fair enough," he responded, holding still as Loki made himself comfortable.

Eventually, he settled against his broad chest, his breathing evening. "I love you, brother," Loki murmured softly, shyly. 

Thor kissed Loki's head, voice bright. "I love you too, Loki." He pulled Loki even closer, stroking his hair until they both drifted off into sweet sleep. 

\--

She was in her chambers, letting her fingers dance absently across her loom as the spring air filtered through her window. She hummed a soft tune, weaving peacefully when a soft, urgent knock came upon her chamber door. 

"Come in," she called softly, calmly. 

A bumbling guard filed in, bowing. "Lady Frigga, we can't find Sir Thor," he reported urgently. 

She rose gracefully to her feet, standing before her underling. "Oh?" An idea popped into her head immediately, but she heard the man out nonetheless. 

"We've been looking for him since this morning, and we can't find him. We've scoured the grounds, and there is no sign of him. What are we to assume? My men-"

She smiled, reaching out to calm the soldier with a tender tone. "I will search for him. Do not worry— my son has quite a way of hiding when he wants to."

"Yes, Allmother." He nodded, bowed, and filed out stiffly. 

With the faintest hint of a smirk, she made her way to the containment wing. Upon her arrival, the guards all stood as she entered, bowing. 

She was there for only a matter of moments before a stout man dressed in expensive robes came forth. Many silks hanging around his neck denoted his rank above all the other soldiers there. "My lady," the man chimed, bowing. 

"May I ask how Loki is doing?" 

"Yes, yes of course! Err..." The commander looked to his underlings for the logbook they kept on Loki's observation. 

She smiled patiently at the men shuffling around. A lowly scout came forward, presenting the log to his commander. "Aha!" The man bellowed. "It seems Loki has been mostly reading in his chair for the last few days. Nothing substantial to report." 

She nodded. "May I see him?" 

"O-of course! Do you wish for our best warriors to accompany you, my lady?" 

"That won't be necessary, Valk," she said softly. 

The man blushed at the Allmother using his name to address him. "O-of course. I presume you know the way?"

She nodded again. "Thank you for your time."

"Thank you, Lady Frigga," the man responded as she turned to leave. 

She opened the door to the bloc where Loki was being held. As soon as she entered, a smile widened upon her face, taking satisfaction in her correct assumption. 

She however frowned at the state that Loki's cell was in, but that was a discussion for another time. Instead, she approached the cell where Thor had Loki's head cradled in his lap as they slept against the furthest wall. 

At the sound of her entrance, Loki stirred. As she approached, he gained lucidity, realising who stood outside his cell.

"Good morning, mother," Loki called, smile strained. 

Frigga smiled at her son, expertly masking how much she desired to learn the origins of the marks across Loki's body. "Good afternoon, Loki." 

Loki frowned instead, looking up at his brother. "I suppose you need Thor for something or another?" His voice was wrought with disappointment. 

She shook her head. "I just wanted to know where he was. I'll leave you two be."

Loki's eyes lit up minutely. "Are you sure?" 

She nodded. "It seems you need him more than we do. Carry on."

"Thank you, mother," Loki murmured, gratefulness exuding from him. 

She smiled knowingly at her sons as she turned to walk away. 

\--

Later, the head of the guard staff entered her quarters as she read. "Lady Frigga," he said, bowing minutely, "it's time for your briefing."

She stretched, marking her page before turning her attention to the armour-clad man before her. "Is it that time already?" 

The man nodded. He started drawling on about insignificant details concerning the guard staff and the overall security of her Realm. It was all terribly dull. 

She, instead of listening, let her mind wander to her sons, probably enamoured in conversation deep below the palace. Part of her was glad that Thor was so willing to forgive Loki, even after everything that happened. Another part of her worried for the both of them, how they denied their feelings in favour of engaging in frivolities.

Odin would tell her that she worried too much... What can she say? She's a concerned mother. 

"Lady Frigga?" 

She blinked once, twice, turning her attention back to the man before her. "Yes?"

From the look in his eyes, it was clear that he knew she wasn't listening, but he let it go nonetheless. "I heard that you went on your own endeavour to search for Sir Thor. How did that go?"

She simply shrugged, an easy smile about her. "Perhaps he's in Midgard visiting friends. I'll ask Heimdall tomorrow whether or not he's let him traverse the Bifrost to get anywhere." She paused to take a short sip of wine. "Though I'm not worried—he has his priorities."

**Author's Note:**

> This entire piece is inspired by a particular gifset I saw on tumblr recently. /I believe it's from Dark World, but it has been so long. But Loki looked so broken and defeated, and it was so beautiful and tragic. It has been a long time since I've been invested in this ship, so there may be plot holes/flaws. Let me know if you see anything! I hope you all enjoy ;3


End file.
